Teardrops on Our Guitar
by courderouge2006
Summary: Season five-ish and later. Her feelings snuck up on her before she even knew it, but is there a chance for her to be with him? Includes some Jonathan fatherhood and life lessons. "Teardrops on My Guitar" by Taylor Swift.


Clois song fic. Written at my folk's at 2 am. Hope it's enjoyable. "Teardrops On My Guitar" by Taylor Swift.

--

She stood in the doorway of the barn, watching them together. He had his arm around Lana, walking to the truck with her. Lois scoffed when he opened the door for her. "Oh please Smallville, gag me. That chauvinistic stuff is so 1950's." She turned around, heading for the loft, brushing her sleeve at her face. "Stupid Shelby, making my stupid allergies screw up."

Lois flopped down on the couch up in the loft, her arms crossed. She blew a strand of hair out of her face… and glared at it as it fell right back into the same place. "I can't do anything about the Pink string bean, but I could cut you off for good you know," she growled at the offending bang. "Oh god… I'm talking to my hair!" Lois fell face first into the worn cushions, screaming.

Turning her face, she blew at her hair again before saying the hell with it and letting it stay there. Sighing, she noticed something she hadn't seen before. Standing slowly, she leaned over an old trunk and picked up a battered guitar case. "Wow… someone's been hiding their inner George Strait." She ran her hands over the cracked leather of the case and opened it. "Wow!" She touched the guitar gently, her fingers sliding down the strings. It was beautiful.

Looking around like a kid sneaking into her parent's room, Lois lifted the guitar out slowly, holding it tightly but gently all at the same time.

Sitting on the sofa, she strummed a few notes. The staff sergeant at one of her father's posts had taught her to play years ago when she was stuck home from school due to a "misunderstanding" with a rude boy who liked to pull on ponytails. She had snuck out every afternoon for another lesson until she knew how to play songs by ear.

The guitar was in tune, someone had definitely been playing it recently. Lois looked back at the doorway of the barn she had just stood in and bit her lip. "Well… if it's just me and the floor that'll hear it…"

Lois started to play, low notes pouring out over the loft as she shut her eyes, thinking of the one guy she couldn't have.

_**He looks at me,  
I fake a smile so he won't see  
What I want and I'm needing  
Everything that we should be**_

She just played whatever she was feeling. Fast upbeat notes would morph into low mournful notes as quickly as another memory crossed before her closed eyes. She tried to stop thinking of him, but she couldn't help it.

Then she thought of her… the perfect girl… and a sob slipped out.

_**I'll bet she's beautiful,  
That girl he talks about  
And she's got everything that I have to live without**_

The music stopped for a moment while she raised her arm to brush a tear away. But she stopped. She placed her fingers back on the strings, and let her tears fall.

_**He talks to me,  
I laugh cause it's just so funny  
And I can't even see  
Anyone when he's with me**_

She thought back to her short stay at Smallville High and the pep rally after school in the beginning of the year. She thought of a soaking wet, shaggy haired farmboy and that smile of his. She still didn't know why she had ruffled his hair. Mostly it had just been to tease him, but that smile… had he enjoyed that moment as much as she had? Did he still think about it?

But she'd never get to know. Little miss perfect pink puff princess… Lois ran out of P's to describe the vapid wonder long before she would have liked to.

_**He says he's so in love,  
He's finally got it right,  
I wonder if he knows he's all I think about at night**_

Lois plucked at the strings gracefully, red eyes staring at the floor in front of her.

She hadn't noticed Jonathan Kent's head poke up above the floorboards to her left.

He had heard someone playing on his old guitar, but he knew Clark had left with Lana a little while ago. Poking his head above the floor, he saw Lois holding the old guitar in her lap, fingers dancing over the strings as she stared ahead… and he saw the tears streaking her face, splashing silent raindrops on the old wood. She wasn't saying a word, she just played.

Jonathan sighed. Turning, he slowly went down the stairs his hands wringing the hammer he was holding. Something was wrong with his daughter, and he wasn't going to let that stand.

"Sheezus this was easier with Clark. Ok… maybe not much, but at least a little bit." Jonathan put the hammer down and turned back to the loft. "Hey, who's playing Willie Nelson up there?" he called out as he stomped onto the stairs. He hit the loft just in time to see Lois wiping hastily at her eyes, the guitar sitting next to her.

"Oh hey Mr. Kent. Sorry. I just… I saw it and I haven't played in a long time and it's a gorgeous guitar." She stared at the floor, twiddling her thumbs. "I didn't mean to upset you."

Jonathan picked up the guitar and sat with her. "You didn't upset me at all Lois. I'm glad to see someone playing this old thing again. My dad gave it to me. And I taught Clark how to play it. Someday I'll pass it on to him full time. Or at least I thought so, I might have to set up a shared custody now." He winked at Lois.

Lois put on a smile and found herself thinking over his words. She imagined a future where she had to visit Clark and Lana now and then to get her weekend with the guitar. She sniffled and raised a hand to her lips, trying to fight it off.

_**He walks by me,  
Can he tell that I can't breathe?  
And there he goes,  
So perfectly,  
The kind of flawless I wish I could be**_

Jonathan sat up. "Lois… if you need to talk about something sometime, just know that we're here for you. I might not be the expert on a lot of it, but Martha's always here for you, and I know Clark would…"

Lois broke down at the name, her hands covering her face as she twisted away from Jonathan, wanting to hide as she broke down. She didn't want the man she respected so much to see her crying like this… especially over his son.

It all clicked in Jonathan's head then. "Oh. I see."

She sat up, brushing her hair back. "Mr. Kent I'm so sorry, I understand if you want me to get out of your house, I really do. I don't know when it started, I just can't… I can't… make myself stop thinking about him."

Jonathan pulled her close, his arms going around her. "It's ok Lois. It's ok. You're not going anywhere." He just held her while she cried.

--

A while had passed from that moment. Lois was walking along the fence line in the back of the farm next to him. They had walked in silence the whole way, save a barely audible "thank you" from Lois when Jonathan handed her his handkerchief.

"I uh… I'm sorry Mr. Kent."

Jonathan swung the branch he had picked up over his shoulders, forearms draped across it. "For what Lois?"

"For breaking down like that. I can't believe I did that. I feel so… so…"

"Raw?" Jonathan asked, glancing over to her.

Lois nodded.

Swinging the branch at the tall grass, he sighed. "It can be hard Lois, I'm not going to lie. And I'm not going to sugarcoat it and say that things with my son are ever very easy. You should have seen it when I tried to have the talk with him. He ran off to Martha and wouldn't talk to me for two days." Jonathan chuckled at the memory.

Lois chuckled until she had the mental image of a six foot tall 13 year old Clark cowering behind Martha Kent rather than hear about the birds and the bees… then she snorted.

She looked at him in horror, her mouth open as she realized what she had done…

Jonathan tried to hold it in… but he roared out in laughter, falling into the grass.

Lois stared at him, her arms crossed. "It's not funny. It's not! Mr. Kent, get up! It's not funny!" She huffed and turned, walking down the fence line, the smile cracking her lips just a little.

Jonathan crawled to his feet, running after her. "Lois, I'm sorry… wait… it wasn't funny, I'm sorry." But he was still laughing.

--

Lois sat with Jonathan on the tailgate of the truck. He had driven out to an old pond at the back of their property, and they watched the sun coming down on the water. They had passed a cornfield on the other side of the road on their way out here, and Lois couldn't help but think about Clark and what he must be doing now. She let out a slight growl as she thought about Lana being with him.

_**She'd better hold him tight,  
Give him all her love  
Look in those beautiful eyes  
And know she's lucky cause**_

"Lois?"

_**He's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar**_

"Uh… Lois?"

_**The only thing that keeps me wishing on a wishing star**_

A whistle cut through the air, but it didn't do any good.

_**He's the song in the car I keep singing, don't know why I do**_

"Sweetheart?"

She jerked out of her daydream, her hand going to her eyes immediately to get rid of the evidence of her crying. "Yes Mr. Kent?"

Jonathan nodded to her laps near her hand. "I think the soda has given up sweetheart."

Lois looked down and saw the mangled can in her hands. That explained the little pricking she felt as she imagined choking the pretty little pink powder puff. "Sorry."

Jonathan chuckled. "Not a problem. It's not my jeans that are gonna smell like grape for the rest of the night."

Lois glared over at him, a smirk on her lips. Then her face softened. "Thank you for all of this Mr. Kent. I know you wasted your whole day almost."

He shook his head. "I didn't waste anything. I spent the day with someone very special to me." He laid his hand on hers on the tailgate of the truck. "I feel like I spent the day with my daughter."

Lois felt new tears coming up. "You… you really mean that?"

Jonathan nodded, slipping an arm around her shoulders. "I certainly do. I know you have a dad already, and I'm not going to try to replace him. But I wanted to let you know how special you are to me Lois, and to Martha. And even though it might not seem like it right now, to Clark."

Lois nodded slightly, laying her head on his shoulder. "I've had a father. But now, I think I have a dad."

Jonathan smiled as he squeezed her. He was happy to watch the sunset with his daughter, hoping he had helped a little bit.

--

Lois walked up to her bedroom. Well technically it was Clark's room, but she had kicked him out of it happily when she came to stay.

She had walked around the farm for a while after they got back, waiting for Mr. Kent and Mrs. Kent to go upstairs. She snuck in, not feeling up for anymore emotion today.

_**So I drive home alone,  
As I turn out the light.**_

Changing into her pj's, she laid down, reaching for the light. She stopped though when she noticed something. Reaching over to his nightstand, she picked up a picture she hadn't paid much attention to. It was that day of the pep rally. After Clark's shift in the dunk tank, he had chased her down and bear hugged her, getting her soaking wet. The picture was of her, him and Chloe smiling, the two wet ones trying to slip rabbit ears onto each other, neither realizing the other was doing it to them.

Lois sighed, put the picture face down and shut off the bedside lamp.

_**I'll put his picture down and maybe  
Get some sleep tonight**_

After several quiet moments in the dark the light clicked on long enough for her to set the picture back upright before turning the lamp off again. "Stupid farmboy."

--

Lois was back in the loft a few days later, her fingers moving over the guitar strings with ease. She was trying to find the right tune for an old song she had heard Mr. Kent singing earlier that she had liked.

"Dammit! What is that chord?"

"Move your fingers up one fret."

Lois almost jumped over the sofa when she heard his voice. She stared up at him, unable to form a word to respond.

_**'Cuz He's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar  
The only one who's got enough of me to break my heart  
He's the song in the car I keep singing, don't know why I do  
He's the time taken up,  
But there's never enough  
And he's all that I need to fall into.**_

She put her brave face back on. "And uh… how do you know that Smallville?"

He smiled and moved over towards her, wiping his greasy hands off on his jeans. "Dad taught me that song years ago. I had trouble with this part too, but it's really easy. Do you mind?"

Lois shook her head and started to pull the strap off of her shoulders. She was stopped by his arms. Clark sat down beside her, his arm wrapping behind her back and his fingers laying on top of hers on the neck of the guitar. His other hand wrapped hers as he moved the pick slightly. "Ready?"

Lois nodded quickly, trying to ignore his scent all around her. And his arms wrapped around her.

Clark walked her through the finger movements, slowly at first, then a few times at normal speed. "Think you have it?"

Lois nodded again, hoping her fingers could remember what had just happened, because she sure couldn't. She took a deep breath and tried again… and it sounded perfect.

Clark pulled his arms away. "See? That was it. Perfect job Lois." He gave her that Kent grin and she was glad she was sitting down. Her legs might not make it through much more of that grin.

"Did you ever doubt me Clark?"

He sat back against the sofa, rubbing his chin. "I'm starting to learn not to." He smiled again. "So let's hear it."

Lois settled back against the sofa, putting her fingers in the right spot. "I've got the music covered, you have to handle the lyrics."

Clark laughed and nodded. "You got it."

Jonathan smiled from his seat on the bottom step below the loft. Things were looking up for the Kent family again… all of the Kent family. He started to walk back out into the yard, singing softly to himself. "Just two good ol' boys… Never meanin' no harm… Beat's all you ever saw…"

--

Lois walked into the old farmhouse, her hands clutching her coat tight around her body. She sighed, seeing all the food covering the counters in the kitchen. "At least we don't have to worry about that."

Clark walked in after her, holding his mom's hand. "Just go sit down mom. We'll take care of everything." She nodded up at him, dabbing her eyes with a handkerchief.

Clark walked up to his wife, sliding her coat off her shoulders. "Do you think you can hang these up? I need to check to make sure people can get down the lane, it's really slushy out there."

"Of course Clark." Lois leaned up, kissing his lips softly. "Go save the day… Superman."

Clark had to smile at that. "You always do that you know. You make it better when it needs to be."

Lois hugged him tighter. "Ditto."

Clark kissed her forehead and walked out the door towards the driveway. Lois turned to put the coats in the closet when she heard a commotion behind her and turned quickly. "Jerry, stop running around, your grandmother needs to rest some. It's been a long day."

Her seven year old looked up at her, biting his lip as he nodded.

"Now Lois, don't be like that. It's good to see children running around this old house again. Especially today." Martha had slipped up on her, patting Lois's arm and hugging her gently.

Lois nodded. "Ok mom." She turned to her son. "Go wild big guy."

Martha went into the living room to play with her grandson. Lois had almost closed the closet door when she noticed something… an old leather case. The tears she had held back during the services came up again, and she didn't even try to stop them from spilling this time. Lois pulled the old case out and knelt next to it, pulling the guitar out. She couldn't help but smile.

"What's that mom?"

She looked up to her sixteen year old daughter, smiling softly. "This was your grandfather's guitar. He got it from your great-grandfather Hiram, and then he passed it on to your dad and me." Lois stood slowly, remembering the first time she had played this thing… and that great day.

_**'Cuz He's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar**_

Lois sat down on the loveseat, her hands moving over the strings slowly.

"You play the guitar mom?" her daughter asked, a shocked look on her face.

"Yes I can play. I'm not just a great reporter and an amazing mom you know." Lois flipped her hair slightly, aiming her best "Watch it with the shocked looks you little brat" look at her daughter. "Your dad and I started to play together… that's how we really got started you know."

Lanie sat down next to her mom. "I thought you guys really got serious when you were both working at the Planet."

Lois nudged her. "That's how long it took your dad to catch on sweety."

Clark walked in to see them both laughing. "What's so… oh wow." Clark stepped closer, kneeling down in front of Lois. He put his hand on the guitar, touching it gently. He moved his hand over hers after a moment, squeezing. "Where was it?"

"Your father moved it inside a few years ago so it wouldn't get harmed out in the barn. He wanted to make sure it was in good condition for you two." Martha stood in the doorway, holding a very tired Jerry in her arms.

Clark started to move. "Mom, he's seven, he's too big to…"

"Clark Jerome Kent if I want to hold my grandson I will. I had to lug you around for a while, didn't I? You were this big when we found you," she shot at him, grinning at her parting shot.

Clark knelt back down. "Yes ma'am."

Lanie scooted closer. "Play something guys."

Clark looked at Lois when she held the guitar out to him. "Go ahead farmboy, it's all yours."

Clark reached for it, but he stopped. Pushing the guitar back towards his wife, he moved up to sit with her. Remembering that day years ago, he wrapped an arm behind her, fitting his hand over hers as he held her other hand. "And for your information, I'm not that slow to catch on. Why do you think I kept teaching you like this?"

Lois turned to look at him, smiling as she leaned her forehead against his. "Thank you."

Clark smiled. "Lanie, I want to teach you one of your grandpa's favorite songs."

As their fingers moved over the strings easily, Lois chanced a glance out the window into the snowy air, and remembered that day with her dad.

_**He's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar**_


End file.
